When I first chanced upon the theatrical trailer of Disney Pixar's Coco, I was excited to see how the story would unfold. Upon knowing it was going to be an animated musical film, my excitement doubled, especially after hearing bits of the film's music in the trailer. When I finally got to watch Coco in the cinemas, I was awestruck. And I can tell you, the long wait and anticipation was worthwhile!
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| Cr: Pixar Animation Studios |
The Synopsis
Coco tells a story about a boy (named Miguel Rivera) from Mexico who loves music but his family refuses to accept music due to their century-long feud. Things start to stir up when Miguel steals the guitar of long-dead musical legend Ernesto De La Cruz so that he could perform at the music festival. Little did he know that his act of stealing could lead him to the Land of the Dead. The story continues with his exploration and adventures in the Land of the Dead while he seeks to find his blessings from his deceased great-great grandfather, which he believes to be Ernesto De La Cruz, so that he could find his way back to the Land of the Living before he becomes dead.
The Animation
The film once again proved Pixar to be one of the greats in computer animation. The vibrant colours and the detailed rendering of their characters amazed audiences worldwide. The skeletons (the dead people) were a tad bit scary at first but with time (and a few "hilarious" jokes), they looked tender, just like humans.
The Music
The music is nothing less than awesome. With a pinch of Latin in most of the songs, including one written by the Oscar-winning team (Andersen-Lopez) who won their Oscar for Frozen's Let It Go, the songs were an impeccable fit to the movie. The title song Remember Me has three renditions in the movie, and two modern interpretations by pop singers Miguel (coincidence, really) and Inigo Pascual (yes, a Filipino). And trust me, the song will be stuck your head for weeks after watching movie - it was addictive, and meaningful at the same time.
My favourite interpretation of the song, you ask? Watch the video above.
[Ed's note: They released a Spanish soundtrack too! Check them out in iTunes, Apple Music and Spotify]
The Story and its Production
With the story revolving around the folklore behind the Mexican holiday Dia de Muertos (Day of the Dead), its cheerful interpretation of the holiday was an eye-opener for those who never heard about the celebration (like me). For the story set in the country of Mexico, Disney made the effort to cast voice actors with a Latin descent and wow, that did miracles to the movie! Not only the script incorporated various Spanish words and phrases, the voice actors sounded very convincing as Mexicans - even their singing sounded Mexican! And I just realised that the character Hector (a friend Miguel met in the Land of the Dead) is voiced by the same person in both the English and the Spainsh-dubbed version. That's not a fun fact, it's a wow fact!
For most Disney movies, the message is always to "follow your dreams". Coco's message may seemed no different at first look. However, as the movie approached its climax, audiences would realised that the story mainly emphasised on the theme of "family" and "music" with the message of "following dreams" tailing behind, making this movie more meaningful than ever.
The Cast
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| Miguel and his dog, Dante (Cr: Youtube - Coco's Teaser Trailer) |
While all casts did an excellent job in portraying their respective roles, I have to commend 12-year-old actor Anthony Gonzalez for his flawless performance as Miguel Rivera. The singing and vocals were all perfect. In fact, I think he deserves an Annie Award for this (Hello Annie Award's judging panel, can you hear me?).
The Verdict
A ten out of ten! This animated feature surpasses its Disney and Disney Pixar's predecessors such as Frozen, Moana and Toy Story for its excellent interpretation of the famous Mexican culture. This movie secures a confirmed nomination for Oscar 2018's Best Animated Feature. Oh wait, I think we already have a winner!
Coco opens in Malaysian cinemas on 23 November, 2017. Catch it now before it's too late!
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